Optimizing Nutrient Management and Delivery

Dr. Karl HoppeArea Extension Livestock SpecialistNDSU Carrington Research Extension Center

It’s all about making a meal and keeping them fed

It’s a full fed but not much for making them gain

Some are eating, some are laying down, all look comfortable

It takes a lot of planning….

• Grain Processing• Hay processing• Ration mixing• Human resource management

Grain Processing

• How should I feed my grains? • High moisture vs dry

• Should they be processed?• It depends.

On the grain, ration, and type of animal

Why process grains?

• Reduce particle size• Expose more surface area to microbial

and intestinal digestion and absorption• Disrupts hull and exposes starch

granules

• Facilitates mixing and reduces sorting

Grain Processing

• Grinding fine particle size• Rolling

• Single stage coarse particle• Double stage fine to coarse

• Flaking large/fine• Extrusion fine• Cooking

Grain Processing

• If processing improves digestion by 10 % but it increases the cost by 10%

what have we gained?

• Some feedyards process grain (temper, steam flake) to increase the water content

inventory gain – sell more pounds than bought

Grain Processing

• Corn• Can be feed whole• Efficiencies can be improved by rolling

cracking• 7 to 10 % improvement

• Avoid fine grinding

Effect of Corn Processing and Feeding Method on Performance

Cracked TMR

Cracked Separate

Whole TMR

Whole Separate

ADG, lb 2.73 2.71 2.76 2.58

DMI,. lb 19.2 19.3 19.2 19.3

Feed:gain 7.03 7.13 6.96 7.46

Rush et al. 2000

Grain Processing

• Barley• Great for Beer!• Ferments Rapidly – ACIDOSIS possible• Should be coarsely rolled or cracked• Poor digestibility if fed whole – husk• Can be ground finer in a backgrounding diet

fed as a TMR (totally mixed ration)• Too finely ground lead to really fast fermentation

and possible death due to acidosis/bloat

Grain Processing

• Oats• Can be fed whole• Processing – minimal improvement in

digestion – 0 to 10 percent• Easy to feed!

• Hull acts as a buffer and helps decrease incidence of acidosis

Grain Processing

• Wheat• Very rapidly fermented

• Difficult to feed at high levels• Requires excellent bunk management

• Should be coarse rolled• Acidosis likely with fine grinding

Grain Processing

• Field Peas• Can be fed whole• For optimum feed value, process by

rolling or cracking

• Sorghum• Hard seed coat• Must be processed

Grain Processing

• Grain Screenings• Pigeon grass (foxtail)

• Grind or roll to crack seed coat• Wheat screenings used to have a high content of pigeon

grass

• Cracked kernal• Damaged kernels don’t need to be processed

• Corn screenings are mostly cracked corn

Light Test Weight Grains

• For cattle – feeding quality is similar to normal weight grains

Remember, as test weight decreases, starch content decreases and fiber content increases

since ruminants ferment both starch and fiber, the net effect is minimal to a point

But ---- ethanol yields are lower in an ethanol plant and they discount heavily for light test wt

Light Test Weight Grains

• Comments• Extreme light test weight feeds can be

discounted in energy content • this is an extreme situation and haying the

field would be an option

• As test weight decreases, protein content increases.

Grain combinations

• Blending grains may improve ration digestibility or cattle performance.. or not

• Concept –Feeding a rumen is like stoking a wood furnace. Nice even burn is best. • If blending feeds will create a steady even

fermentation then that’s the goal.

Grain combinations

• Most of the time with only one grain, the variability in particle size creates the even fermentation.

• Ensiled high moisture corn (HMC) mixed with dry rolled corn (DRC) can have a synergistic effect.

• Mix fast fermenting feeds (HMC) with slower fermenting feeds (DRC)

Processing Hay

• Why grind hay?• To allow ration mixing

• Only slightly higher Dry Matter Intake• None or small change in digestibility

• If it was pulverized and lignin broken and exposed, then digestibility will increase

• Chemical reaction needed to really work – anhydrous ammonia, sodium hydroxide, hydrogen peroxide

Processing hay - concerns

• Particle size to large• Poor mixing

• Particle size to small• Lower effective fiber size (need long fiber for cud

chewing)• Acidosis is likely since cud chewing is reduced

• Grinding loss – wind loss, heating loss• snow/moisture consistency in pile

Processing hay

• Tub grinders• Own vs Lease vs Custom• Flexibility works with many different forages

• Vertical Mixers• Chop hay prior to ration mixing• Works well for high forage rations (40-60%)

• Great for Backgrounders, dairy• Not best choice for finishing rations

• These mixers require a substantial horsepower tractor

Summary

• Value of Grain processing depends on:

• Grain type• Processing method• Diet• Performance expectations

• Hay processing• Facilitates ration mixing

Feed mixing

TMR --Totally Mixed Ration

• Advantages• Complete ration can be delivered to feedbunk• Reduced manual labor

• Disadvantages• Equipment cost – mixer, feedbunks

(fenceline)• Forage must be processed

Feedlot Performance -TMR vs. handfed

Feedlot Performance -TMR vs. handfed

Mixers

• Silage delivery wagons• Not really a mixer

• Reel Type• 3 or 4 Auger• Vertical mixer

Feed Delivery Wagons• Silage Wagons

• Not designed to mix feed• Designed to deliver silage• Can layer in and deliver feed

• May work in backgrounding with high forages - -also works if feed is already mixed before loading into wagon

Feed Delivery Wagons

Mixers --- reel type

Mixer – 3 or 4 auger

Mixer – vertical

Mixing Order – High Grain diets

1. Grain2. Dry supplement3. Forages4. Fat5. Molasses or liquid supplement6. Mix to manufactures guidelines (3-6

min)

Mixing Order –Backgrounding diets

1. Grains2. Pelleted supplement3. Silage4. Hay5. Liquid supplement

* add dense feeds first *

Mixing Order for Various Mixers

Auger/hay kit

Reel Auger MFG #1

Vertical Auger MFG #2

Haylage 3 2 3 4 4

Corn silage 4 3 4 5 1

Hay 1 5 1 1 2

Supplement 5 4 5 2 5

Corn

Ref: Dr. Greg Lardy, NDSU and others

2 1 2 3 3

Batch size

• Most mixer operate efficiently at 60-90 % of rated capacity

• Overloading mixer will not mix• Underloading mixers don’t mix well• Don’t over mix – separation can

occur

What should a feed truck/wagon driver do?

• Monitors feeds and inventories• Does dry matters• Maintains the mix sheets• Mixes and delivers the rations• Monitors DMI and orts• Watches the cattle• Keeps records• Shovel bunks, etc

Feeder Decisions

• Determine batch size• Adjusted for:

• Number of head (deads, sold)• Feed Refusal• Dry Matter content of wet feeds

• Silages can dry out over time• Wet feeds i.e. distillers grains change moisture on

loads and over time

• Batch – errors affect cattle performance!• Too much weight, too little - big effect on DM intake

Feed Delivery

• Goal: Deliver rations uniformly along the bunk

• Do not pile it all at one end• Monitor mixing with bunk samples..

Feed sorting

• Will always be some sorting• Try to minimize

• Utilize wet feeds or liquid supplement• Improves palatability• Decrease fines and dust

• Ask someone to review your feedstuffs and processing methods

• What you think is good enough could be better

Summary

• Totally mixed rations TMR• Improve performance• Improved feed efficiency

• Processing feeds• Improves utilization/ digestion

• Feed Delivery• Keep feed fresh and pay attention to

details

And one more thing…

• If you have employees (or need them),Communication is important

Identify expectations

Share thoughts, training, and stress attention to details